Sunday 25 July 2010

This week I am mostly eating...fro-yo

My name is Jo and I am addicted to frozen yoghurt. Having never had it or seen it in the UK before this summer it seems to suddenly be everywhere. Available in Mr Whippy style swirls at special 'fro-yo' shops or by the scoop at similarly fashionable Italian gelato shops, it is a low fat alternative to ice cream and seriously addictive!

My first foray into the world of fro-yo was at the heavenly Gelato Mio where I like to have a half scoop of it accompanied by a fruity sorbet, such as mango or melon. The good thing about Gelato Mio is they let you have a try of anything you want and they are very generous with the single scoops, letting you mix and match. I was persuaded to try it by the staff and now have it every time. Gelato Mio has a loyalty card where you get a stamp each time and your tenth stamp gives you a free double scoop. Dangerously, they have just opened a shop around the corner from my flat and now I am a very loyal customer!

Last weekend I headed over to Frae in Camden Passage, Islington, to check out their wares. They offer two flavours of the whippy stuff, natural or green tea, and you pick which fruit to have as toppings. I just had natural without toppings and I wasn't wowed by it. I tried someone else's green tea one and I had serious food envy!

Yogurtry has just opened on Hampstead High Street so I thought I had better try it out. I get the impression it's going to be a chain as it had that vibe. It is heavily air-conned which doesn't really appeal to me when I'm eating something that cold but there were lots of people sitting in there as it was a hot day so I guess some people are drawn because of it. They do all kinds of flavours, including peanut butter and strawberry tart, and toppings like fruit and chocolate sauce. Again, I just had plain because for me it's the acidity and tang of the yoghurt that appeal so much. Again, I wasn't wowed. Maybe the flavours here are the way to go.

And so to my final and most recent chilly delight. Opposite my office in Queen's Park there's a deli called Salusbury Deli which recently put a bright pink poster up outside announcing the arrival of their frozen yoghurt machine. It worked, because I was in there later that afternoon to try it. Wow!The perfect tang and mouthwateringness and it's just across the road! I just wish they had a loyalty card as this is going to be an expensive habit if I keep having one every day.


I now fancy myself as a bit of a fro-yo connoisseur! When it comes to the whippy frozen yoghurt, the Salusbury deli wins hands down but for the scoopy stuff, Gelato Mio has a recipe that I would love to get my hands on.

Tuesday 13 July 2010

My new favourite cheese: Oxford Isis

A couple of weekends ago I headed down to Cheltenham on the pretext of seeing a friend, but really to eat at Le Champignon Sauvage and to visit the Cheeseworks! Le Champignon I will blog about later but I wanted to mention one of the cheeses I bought from the Cheeseworks, Oxford Isis.

I love it when I go into a cheese shop and there are lots of cheeses that I don't recognise. I get so excited and it really gives you the opportunity to discuss my favourite topic, cheese, with the shop assistants! I love telling them what kind of cheeses I like and seeing what they come up with for me to try. This time it was Oxford Isis.

Pongcheese.co.uk describes it as "a very French English cheese" and I'd have to agree. Oxford Isis is a soft cheese, washed in honey mead. It is deliciously stinky and has that sticky kind of rind that makes your hands smell for days but usually indicates the kind of cheese that I will love! Without meaning to sound pretentious, it has a really complex flavour that really develops in your mouth.

I haven't got a picture of it because I scoffed the lot so I have had to poach a picture from the Cheeseworks website (I hope they don't mind!).